Amid the COVID-19 pandemic, the adoption of recruiting technology is speeding up, according to experts. Some companies that weren't already using tools like job simulations, virtual assessments and video interviews implemented them when shifting to telework due to shelter-in-place orders. "A lot of the work that recruiters have been doing historically wasn't actually interviewing people," Kevin Parker, CEO of HireVue told HR Dive in a recent interview. "It was trying to schedule people, doing follow up phone calls, phone screens and things like that. When you can automate a lot of that process, the recruiter can really focus on people that are most qualified for the position."

A "smart-automation" approach can give a typical HR organization a measurable lift when it comes to improving customer experience and efficiency, according to new research from the Hackett Group. The Hackett Group's new Digital World Class analysis found that those typical HR organizations can reduce costs by 17% and operate with 26% fewer staff hours--while also improving effectiveness and internal customer experience. The Hackett Group research advises that, by following a smart-automation strategy, typical HR functions can boost efficiency levels close to those seen by world-class HR organizations (defined as those that achieve top-quartile performance in both efficiency and effectiveness across an array of weighted metrics in the Hackett Group's comprehensive HR benchmark). For instance, world-class HR organizations currently operate at 20% lower cost and with 31% fewer employees than typical HR organizations, the research found. Smart automation--defined as approaches including robotic-process automation, cognitive automation, intelligent data capture and other leading-edge technologies--can enable world-class HR organizations to cut costs and reduce the number of staff hours needed to perform existing administrative/transactional work.

For those who are unfamiliar, the concept of the technology adoption curve was popularized by Everett Rogers in his book Diffusion of Innovations. Although some HR tech writers have joked that the overall HR technology adoption curve looks markedly different, with a majority of HR tech buyers disproportionately disposed to the far left of the curve, the true speed of adoption of AI in talent acquisition tracks closely to the standard curve. Innovators and early adopters are exposed to the greatest amount of risk from adopting new often unproven technologies. However, due to the considerable competitive advantages that may be realized by implementing breakthrough technology, they also stand to benefit the most. While the innovators and adopters have a greater appetite for and ability to manage risk, for the majority of companies shooting to be part of the early majority is the most strategically advantageous way to implement new technology.

The Human Resources (HR) function has seldom been known for its rapid adoption of new technology. Things are changing in this regard, however. HR now has lots of data about employees from internal HR information systems, and there are increasing volumes of data about potential job candidates from external sources like LinkedIn. This data availability, and the general trend toward data- and analytics-based decisions in organizations, set the tone for HR use of advanced analytics and AI. Some HR organizations embraced analytics almost a decade ago; I and a couple of co-authors found enough examples to write about them as early as 2010. The obvious next step for HR is to adopt artificial intelligence, and that is definitely happening.

AI-type technologies have the potential to reduce workplace bias and help "equalize" the experience... You forgot to provide an Email Address. This email address doesn't appear to be valid. This email address is already registered. You have exceeded the maximum character limit.

Technological innovations have impacted almost every aspect of life over the past century. The steam engine and electricity allowed total labor productivity to grow at more than 2 percent per year and the total number of weekly work hours to drop from 60 to 40. The concept of artificial intelligence is not new but has recently come into view as a technology that is capable of revolutionizing the world and bringing a new industrial revolution. A significant amount of research and discussion among scientists and economists has focused on the critical topic of disruption to labor markets and potential productivity gains from AI. However, there is a more nuanced picture of the way in which AI will reshape how we work – in many cases augmenting our abilities and supporting organizations to redefine their operating models for improved performance and agility.

With intelligent automation marching steadily toward broader adoption, media coverage of this historic technology disruption is turning increasingly alarmist. "New study: Artificial intelligence is coming for your jobs, millennials,"1 announced one business news outlet recently. "US workers face higher risk of being replaced by robots,"2 declared another. These dire headlines may deliver impressive click stats, but they don't consider a much more hopeful--and likely--scenario: In the near future, human workers and machines will work together seamlessly, each complementing the other's efforts in a single loop of productivity. And, in turn, HR organizations will begin developing new strategies and tools for recruiting, managing, and training a hybrid human-machine workforce. Notwithstanding sky-is-falling predictions, robotics, cognitive, and artificial intelligence (AI) will probably not displace most human workers. Yes, these tools offer opportunities to automate some repetitive low-level tasks. Perhaps more importantly, intelligent automation solutions may be able to augment human performance by automating certain parts of a task, thus freeing individuals to focus on more "human" aspects that require empathic problem-solving abilities, social skills, and emotional intelligence. For example, if retail banking transactions were automated, bank tellers would be able to spend more time interacting with and advising customers--and selling products.